Ricky Gervais: 'An Idiot Abroad' is 'my gift to the world'

Fans of
Ricky Gervais are probably at least a little familiar with
Karl Pilkington.

The famous-by-association pal of "The Office" co-creators Gervais and
Stephen Merchant appears in their podcast and its animated HBO counterpart,
"The Ricky Gervais Show."

But on Jan. 22, Pilkington finally gets his own showcase with "An Idiot Abroad." The Science Channel broadcast of the British series follows him as he cluelessly visits the Seven Wonders of the World. And when the trio spoke at the Television Critics Association's Winter Press Tour, via satellite, their favorite episode seemed like a clear choice.

"It's one of the funniest two minutes of television I've ever been involved with," Gervais says of a Jordan hostage training program that required Pilkington's kidnapping. "He thought it was real."

Pilkington doesn't see it that way, but there's a lot he and Gervais don't see eye-to-eye on. "I think of him as the missing link," says Gervais. "That's why I started the podcast. He's my gift to the world."

The feeling is somewhat mutual. "
He's like an iron lung," Pilkington says of his friend. "I kind of need him, but I wish I didn't."

Science Channel has yet to release a promo for their run of "Idiot," but it will probably look a lot like this British one: